1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electronic equipment, display control method and storage medium. More particularly, the present invention relates to electronic equipment in which page turning of images can be performed readily with simple touch of a hand of a user, and display control method and storage medium.
2. Description Related to the Prior Art
Portable electronic equipment or image display apparatus having a touchscreen panel as a user interface is widely used. The touchscreen panel is characterized in that a display also has a function of buttons, which can be used easily in view of simple manual touch. An electronic book reader is an example of the electronic equipment, and used for reading an electronic book. An example of electronic book is a cartoon book (manga).
In general, there is a difference between left-to-right and right-to-left directions in a page turning direction of pages of a book according to languages. In books in English or other alphabetic languages, rows (lines) in a document go downwards. Pages are bound in a document feed direction of the left-to-right direction. Thus, the page turning direction is the right-to-left direction. This is the case in books written in Japanese in horizontal writing of characters.
In contrast, in books in Japanese in vertical writing of characters, columns (lines) in a document run in the right-to-left direction. Pages are bound in a document feed direction of the right-to-left direction. Thus, the page turning direction is the left-to-right direction. In the writing system of Japanese today, the vertical writing of characters is used for text in particular fields, for example, literature, law, language education, magazines and cartoons (manga). Books of cartoons are notably widespread in public.
JP-A 2-230313 discloses an electronic book reader or browsing device, in which pages can be turned easily in a manner similar to page turning of an actual book, magazine or other printed document.
However, viewer as software for viewing an electronic book is so constructed that a rubbing movement to the left is associated with page turning to next page and that a rubbing movement to the right is associated with page turning to a preceding page, irrespective of left-to-right and right-to-left directions of page turning of page information. A user is obliged to manipulate with unnatural impression differently from simple operation, because a direction of the page turning of the book of the left-to-right direction is opposite to the direction of reading.
The electronic book reader of JP-A 2-230313 has only an input device in one position. It is impossible to manipulate the electronic book reader to turn pages of images in a manner of manually turning pages of an actual book.